Combustion chamber burner



Nov. z2, 1949 C. J. STALEGO coMBusTIoN CHAMBER BURNER Filed July 27, 1944 Patented Nov. 22, 1949 2,489,244A Vj CoMBUsTloN CHAMBERBURNER Charles', J. Stalego, ,Newarl5, hio,' assigirior to;

OwensfCorningA Fiberglas"Corporation,Y a coi'-, poration of Delaware Application J ulyk 27,1944,-:Serial- N0. 546,846

The present invention. relates toimprovements in `.fuel `burners end particularly burners ofthe, type. invwhich fuel, e. g., fuel gas or atomized oil,fis burned within va combustion. chamber. andl t 7e products of the.combusticn are exhausted to the atmosphere vthrough varestricted port for developing a'high velocity ,blaster the products of combustion,

."Such Vcombustion chamberburners have beeny used Ain the `proiuetion:l of fine glass-fibers fromv streams of molten glass or `from rods of solidglass. They are', of course`,useful kin other ways, parl ticularly whereahig'hvelooityintensely hot blast of#gas" isrequired` For instance, burners of this type-'find utility inthe heat treatment of metals or. other materials.

' It is animportant 'object of the present inventionto increase -the vrvelocity of .the gaseous blast from a burner of combustion chamber type, and. it is another objectto increase .the .temperature oiv the'gaseous blast.'

In burners,of.this type: the wal1s oi the coinbustion chamber arev usually xformed .to provide a streamlined flovvof the products ofA combustion. Combustion Within the burner takes place along the heated walls of the, chamber and at this hightemperature expansion of the, gas creates a certain amount or turbulence within the chamber Aas theLv gas moves toward the orifice at a high ratej. of speed. I have found that underk certain conditions there is incomplete combustion of the gasiedto ther-burners anda portion of it is carri`ed unburned throughthe combustionv chamber to the orifice.V

As -a consequence, vvit burns in theV atmosphere instead of 'within `the- Vcham-ber withattendant loss oftemperature and velocity-of the blast, and a reduction-in eiciency-of the burner. Normally the unburned'or incompletely burned gasesleave the iburner .orice..a1ong a pathcentrally `of the blastissuing from .the orificeT to form arcold streak,- that is, van ,elongated region 1of vrelatively low tem-A peraturewithin thecenter of the blast.v

It is, therefore, a specic object oithe present invention to provide in a liber-forming process a combustion..chamberburner of increased eiiiciencyachieved by complete combustion within the combustion chamberofthe gases fed thereto to prevent unburned. gases from escaping. into the. atmosphere.

Burners 0f thepresent typeare capa-ble of nue me`0u-iapplcat0rl$relh ,of which'may require a differently. shaped l: oriiiceor form of burner; The burner orifice may-be either oblong, oval; ork

round depending uponthe shape-ofthe name V(iesired'and the manner in'which itis employed? The shape ofA the 4burner `orifice is an important factorin the design oi the. burner 'chamber vsince it is ,desirable Aforobtaining the highest -degree oi operating 4eiliciencyto provide a combustion4 chamber and" orice oiythesame general cross# sectionalshape.`

Thisprinciple of burnerI construction, is adapt-1 ablejto forming multiple combustion, chamber burners havinga common orifice for the'dis'charge of the products Aof combustionto ,theA atmosphere., The burner chamber. may lbe divided into two or more Y combustion..compartments or the ,desiredshape which mayv bei substantially cylindrical, v frusto .conicalor rectangular according tothe shape of theiinal discharge. orice. The products. of combustion Vrfrom .each compartment combine before `discharge.. from the burner and produce a. high degreeofgturbulence. andmixingof the gases which results in ablasft of extremely high temperaturfe issuing 4from the orifice.,A

It isstilLanotherobject of the invention to pro-.. vide a combustion chamber burner of a multiple: chamber type having-a. discharge orifice. common toall chambers Itis aiurther object of, thelinvention to provide a lcombustion chamber ,type burnerin which the.'v walls forming thechamber are shaped to produce; a/maximumturbulence and .mixing of @ignited gases within the chamber.

Other objects and advantages of the invention; will .become apparentduringthe course ofthe following descriptiony when. considered in *views of the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figurel vis, adiagrammaticyiew of atypicaliiber forming. .apparatus depicting the burner of.` the .present inventionv used tov form.-ne glassfibers;

Figure 2 isa yfront elevation of a burner;

. Figure 3is.a vertical longitudinal sectional view, of the burner takengontheline 3-3 of Figure-2;`v

Figure 4 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken on thelineA-f-ll of Figure 3;

Fig ure 5 isga sectiona1-,viewrthrough a modifiedformof .the mixer-burner;` and Figure .6 is a sectionallviewthrough a modified form of multi-chamber burner.

Referring to Figurel of the drawings, theiflberi forming.apparat us includes generallyia glass@ melting unit I0 adapted to discharge fine streams of/ molten glassgwhich maybe attenuated .by continuouslydriven copperatingfrolls Hf to the form ofv continuous primary filaments .112. The rolls: l l feed` the laments into, a guide-1 memberV I3V by. vvhicljithey are; .supported during the. nalf at-i iMode-ifi tenuating or blowing operation. Attenuation of the primary filaments l2 to ne short fibers is accomplished by means of a burner l5 or name blower which is capable of producing an intensely hot gaseous blast of Very high velocity. The ends of the filaments are projected into the flame by the feed rolls and are substantially instantaneously melted so that the molten tips of the laments are attenuated into extremely line bers by the force of the flame or blast. These bers when gathered together by suitable collecting means (not shown), form a mass having a cottony or wool-like texture which may be formed into mats, bats, or rovings, or slivers from which yarns or threads may be twisted, by any conventional process.

The combustion chamber burner of the present invention provides a substantial increase in both temperature and flame velocity so that increased production is realized as will be brought out in detail presently.

The burner l5 as illustrated in Figure 3 of the drawings comprises a shell or casing I8 preferably formed of metal and preferably of rectangular shape, and adapted to support the burner structure therein. The shell is provided in one end with a slot I9 through which the burner structure dening the burner orifice projects and is open at its other end. Flanges 2l] at the upper and lower edges of the open end of the shell provide means by which a cup-shaped closure cap 2| may be secured to the shell by means of bolts 22. A pipe connection 23 is provided in the cap 2l to supply a highly combustible fuel through a pipe 24 to the burner from a suitable source.

Such a fuel may be a premixed fuel gas and air,

suitable fuel gases including ordinary manufactured or natural fuel gas, methane, propane, or other readily combustible gases. The gas-air mixture is supplied to the burner at a pressure less than l0 pounds per square inch and preferably at pressures of from 1 to 3 pounds per square inch.

The fuel gas-air mixture has the advantage of being readily obtainable and is more easily and safely handled than, for instance, propane or other highly compressed gases. Also, it is more economical than oxygen-acetylene when burned in sufficient volume to produce a blast having the high velocity obtainable with the gas-air mixture.

The burner includes within the shell I8 an elongated combustion chamber 25 divided by a partition wall 26 or baille to form in effect a pair of chambers 21 and 28 or compartments communicating with a common narrow rectangular dischargeorice 3B through which the products of combustion escape. The partition wall 26may be formed integral with the chamber or it may be supported when formed separately in grooves 26a provided in the side walls of the burner chamber.

The walls forming the chambers 21 and 28 may be formed of a suitable ceramic refractory material capable of withstanding high temperatures. The life of the refractory material is extended if a liner 32 of high melting point metal is employed to cover the refractory wall as illustrated herein although the use of the liner is not necessary.

In order to withstand the high temperatures created within the burner the refractory materials from which the body of the burner may be formed are, for example, the metal oxides or carbides such as tungsten carbide, boron carbide,

`Which are Ideveloped Within the burner.

4 silicon carbide or chromium, zirconium or beryl lium oxide. The entire burner body may be formed of one or a suitable combination of some of the above materials.

The metallic liner 32 may be formed in any suitable way, for instance, by the powder metallurgy method of pressing nely divided metal to the proper form and then sintering the particles to consolidate them intoV an article of the desired shape. Tungsten and tungsten alloys are examples of high melting point metals suitable for this method of production and are adapted to withstand the temperatures approaching 4000n F. The metal liner may be used alone to form the chamber but since it is most economically formed rela.. tively thin it is preferable to reinforce the liner by a backing of ceramic refractory material as shown at 33, the refractory material acting also to insulate the liner from the shell I8.

Complementary orifice plates 35 mountedvwithin the cap 2l are adapted to register with the chambers 21 and 28 and provide a uniformly distributed llow of fuel to the combustion chambers. The plates are preferably formed of a ceramic material and are held in place against the liner and wall members by the cap bolts 22.

In ordinary burners of the combustion chamber type having a cross-sectional area of the combustion chamber of approximately two square inches, chamber temperatures have been observed to reach the neighborhood of 3100 F. The blast has a flame Velocity through a one-eighth inch orice of approximately 500 to '700 feet per second. In such burners, the orice is located equidistantly With respect to the side walls of the combustion chamber and under certain conditions incompletely burned gas from the center of the chamber may be drawn through the orice, tending to produce a relatively cold area within the name.

The present burner overcomes this objection to previous burners mainly by having the orifice 30 offset with respect to each chamber so that incompletely burned gas does not pass directly from the orilce plate 35 to the discharge orifice 3U. Also, higher temperatures are developed within the present burner and cause combustion rea-ction to take place more rapidly and completely. The products of combustion from both chambers combine at a high Velocity in the region adjacent the rear of the orifice 30 to produce an increased turbulence and mixing before the gases are discharged. Ridges 3| or other projections may be formed on the chamber walls to aid in mixing the gases and also for increasing the combustion surface. Thus complete combustion of the gas is obtained before it leaves the orifice.

As may be noted in Figure 4, the side walls of the chambers are vertical and substantially parallel while the upper and lower walls (Figure 3) curve or taper toward each other in the direction of the orifice. The partition wall 26 is provided with a tapering forward edge and forms with the top and bottom walls substantially restricted passages through which the gas passes before reaching the orifice. This increases the Velocity of the products of combustion from each chamber before the two streams of gas are combined. The complementary converging outer walls of the passages tend to direct the ames at a substantial angle toward each other which results in the increased turbulence previously mentioned. An opening 36 may be provided in the partition wall liopeiated successfully'jon .;sumptionl;offabout f,prevo us burners'of/'this typefand with 4 accomplished by 'fued Apri1'27, 1944.

` bustion :combustion or ceramic-materials.

Vpressure s ivvithinjthehambers.

ve jiounidjthat `jthe `present-'burner may lbe '4 an increased-`fuel conabove the` maximum for `greatly 'With afuel consumption rate Yinicr'e'ast'ed results:

j forfthe presentburnerfofZOO cubic'ifeetgper hour,

lathe" temperature" a'dj acentfthe 'criflce within 'the 4"-i'urnerjls aboutjBOlOto .3700"Y F.,and`.the temperai;ture ef `the' blast immediately outside the -erinee I islaboutr 315.0" F. ^With a discharge orice 've thirty'fseeenfds inch wide 'extenuingthefuu Width i'.'Qfthe' burner vand withagcombined crosssectional {llea lof the ptwocombusftion .chambers of aboutlli ifoursduare mchesga'flamevelocity of from'l'YQO $0 1800 feet per` secon'd`,has"been obtained, and

with athree-sixteenthinch orifice a velocity Jof lAOOto l1.500 feet results. `The v increased internal temperatures' `oftn efpresent burner are'believed tof' be the result of complete combustion 'of 'the fuel "lwithin theiburner together with increased gas VLccrsumptionperfun'it 'ci time, both of Ywhich'in '.tirn result in ahig'heridjegree of expansion of the combustion .products with a consequent increase ,in .velocity.

The higher'temperature and blast speeds permitlfeedingglassirds er mame-ets inte the flame f {atahigher rateso ,thatlat'tenuation of themaments to nefibers is'compa'r'ably increased. The

volume offflne bersjattenuated .by the present (burner is .two toiour @times the volume a previous l'ourner [of ,this general 'type normally/produces.

v`the burn'er'at" anl extremelyhightemperature and velocity.

Figure illustrates@ a vitirtlier VVVembcdin'lent Vof thefpresentj invention in lwhich the burner 569 comprises L; a "casing f6 I forVA supporting a burner 'As in the form of the invention shown in AFigures [l ,t0 4, the endsoffthechambers 63, 6G and `S5 are o"f decreased crcssesection'al area.

AAn orice `plate "-.`i at'the inner ends of the chambers'is arrang'edjto introduce fuel gas and 'air mixture from asuitable source to thechambers.

` 'ceathe Vproducts"df combustion from the chamb erfis ccmbining withithevdischarging gases from fthe chamber iSd which 4in turn mix with gases Figure 3 vfurther illustrates specically .the

"lmanner in which the-priirlaryfilaments,are introduced into't'he flame.` Since the arhe velocity'is hghest Aas .itlissues from the orifice, it has been found expedient tointrodu'ce the fiber into'the ,flame las close as possible .to the orifice.

approximates the shape of .the burner. The man- Qn'er'of feeding the primary blast fromthe burner isldesc'ribedfin more detail filaments into .the

,iin myfcopend'ing iapplication Serial No. 533,046,

' Figure 5 illustrates .a'niodied frmof burner V "that is also adapted to produce 'complete comof the gaseousiuel. The burner com- `prises a hollow rectangular shell 50 having a cap lillcolted to the openend thereof andthrough *whichjuelis supplied ,to the burner. An orice thejforrnpf a linerpf highsoftening point metal The -upper and lower walls forming .the flbergde I3 With" sectional shape of the chambers. Burners of this aicutout portionadjacentthe tipso that it closely lformed within'the shell iromlthe'chamber T55 witha'high degree of turbulen"ce. v This Lprdvidesrfor ablast of high velocity in whichfthefgases arecomplete'ly burned as they .dischargec'fromthe'outergorifice.

V Ihe oriiicesv may` 'be round, .oval or oblong and .preferably correspondls'ubstantially to the crosstypelareuseful'when a flame of high temperature and Avelocity'Iwithinfa .localized varea are desired.

Modifications may 'be `resorted rto within the .spirit of the invention .and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim; `1. A comhustionchamber*burner of thecharacter" described [comprising a hollow shell substantially rectangular in cross section and having an .opening in one end defining a discharge orifice ,forthe productsfof vcombustion escaping from the `burner, alea p closing'theopposite end of said shell through which .a combustible fuel is supplied underlow pressure, aliner ldening a chamber withinthe shell insulated Vfrom the walls thereof and Vhaving-one `end open to the atmosphere through said-orice, the upper .and lower opposite malls of said liner .tapering toward said orifice, a

-.o f the chamberf are shaped to create an undu lating or serpentine chamber gradually ,decreas- "in cross-sectional area Yto .a discharge orifice orport156 inthe closed end of the shell 50.

The liner is supported within the shell by a Arefractory insulating material '5i' so that contact between the shellrand liner is prevented andheat fradiation lheld to ,a 'minimum It is also to'fbe Yunderstood that the 'combustion chamber walls "'may 'be formed entirely ofceramic'material.

In the present modified type of burner the fuel Vfn'ixi'ture is .supplied .at a relatively low vpressure ,and when ignited within the chamber expands at a high velocity and'escapes through the discharge orifice. The heated walls of the chamber increase the rate of ignition of thejgas. 4'As the gas `flows 'along' the Aundulating walls it 'deneeted therelongitudinally disposed dividing wall in alignmentiwith lthe orifice and equally dividing said chamber linto two compartments, said wall terminating short 'of said yorii'lce and Yforming with said liner Walls a restricted passage from each compartn'ient, and .orice plates within the cap registering with each compartment through which fuel is supplied, saiddividing wall provided with an aperture to equalize the pressures built up within said compartments.

2. In an apparatus for forming ne glass fibers in which glass is fed into the path of a stream of high temperature products of combustion flowing ia-t Asulcient velocity to :attenuate the glass to ne bers, a burner 'hai ring Ia chamber within which a combustible mixture of gases is burned, said ve'eiiemterneving 'animetpert through which the combustible mixture of gases is introduced into the chamber and also having a discharge orifice through which the products of combustion are discharged in the form of a high temperature blast, the walls of the chamber at opposite sides of the discharge orice converging toward the discharge orifice, and a `Wall extending from a point adjacent the inlet port toward but short of the discharge orice and from side to side of the chamber to :partition the chamber into two compartments, the end of said wall adjacent the discharge orice being so related with respect to the opposite .converging walls of the chamber .as to form restricted outlets from the two compartments so that the turbulence of the products of combustion from the two compartments is increased prior to passage of the products of combustion through said discharge orifice.

3. In an apparatus for forming fine glass fibers in which glass is fed into the path of a stream of high temperature .products of combustion owing at sufcient velocity to attenuate the glass to ne iibers, a burner having a chamber within which a combustible mixture of gases is burned, said chamber having an inlet port through which the combustible mixture of gases is introduced into the chamber and also having .a discharge orice through which the pro-ducts of combustion are discharged in the form of a high temperature blast, the walls of the chamber at opposite sides of the discharge orice converging toward the discharge lorilice, and a wall extending from a point adjacent the inlet port and toward but short of the discharge orice and yfrom side to side of the chamber to partition the chamber into two compartments, the end of said =wall adjacent the discharge orifice being so related with respect to the opposite walls .of the chamber as to form restricted outlets from the two compartments so that the turbulence of the .products of combustion from the two compartments is increased prior to passage of the products of combustion through said discharge orice.

4. In an apparatus for .forming iine glass fibers in which glass is fed into the path of a stream .of high temperature products of combustion nowing at sufficient velocity to attenuate the glass to fine bers, a burner having `a chamber within which a combustible mixture of gases is burned,

said chamber having an inlet port through @which the combustible mixture of gases is introduced into the chamber and also having a discharge orice through which the products of combustion are discharged in the form of a high temperature bla-st, the walls of the chamber at opposite sides of the discharge orice converging toward the discharge orice, and a wall extending from a point adjacent the inlet port and toward but short of the `discharge orifice and from side to side of the chamber to partition the chamber into two compartments, the wall being in substantial alignment with said discharge orifice so that the compartments are offset laterally `with respect to the orifice, ywhereby the turbulence of the products of combustion :from the two compartments is increased .prior to passage of the products of combustion through said discharge orifice.

5. In an apparatus for forming fine glass fibers in 4which glass is fed into the lpath of a stream of high temperature products of combustion owing at sui'licient velocity to attenuate the `glass to iine iibers, a burner having a chamber within which a combustible mixture of gases is burned, said chamber having an inlet port through which the combustible mixture of gases is introduced into the chamber and also having a discharge oriice through `which the products of combustion are ldischarged in the :form of a high temperature blast, the opposite walls of said chamber converging toward each other adjacent said discharge orifice, and a wall extending `from the inlet port and toward but short of the discharge orifice and from side to side of the chamber to partition the chamber into two compartments, the wall being in substantial alignment with the discharge orifice and the end of said wall adjacent the discharge oriiice being so related with respect to the opposite converging lwalls of the chamber as to form restricted outlets from the two compartments, whereby the turbulence of the products of combustion from the two compartments is increased prior to passage of the products of combustion through said discharge orifice.

6. In an apparatus for forming ne glass fibers in which glass rods are Ifed across the outlet end of an exhaust orice to melt and attenuate the rods .by the heat and force of 1a blast of hot .products of combustion emitted :from said orice, a burner having a plurality of combustion chambers therein, said chambers provided at one end with inlet ports through which combustible gaseous fuel is fed into the chambers to be burned therein and an exhaust orifice common to and communicating with the .other ends of said chambers 4from which orifice the stream of hot products flows, said chambers being offset laterally from said common orifice so that gases passing through said chambers .must deviate from a straight path to pass through said orifice to assure uniform lcombustion of the gases.

7. In an apparatus for forming ne glass 'bers in which glass rods are fed across the outlet end of an exhaust orifice to melt and attenuate the rods by the heat and force of a blast of hot products of combustion emitted from said orifice, a burner having a plurality of combustion chambers therein, said chambers provided at one end with inlet ports through which combustible gaseous fuel is fed into the chambers to be burned therein and an exhaust orice common to and communicating Iwith the other ends of said chambers from which orice the stream of hot ,products flows, passages of less transverse dimensions than said chambers connecting said chambers `with said common orifice, said chambers being offset laterally from said common orifice so that gases .passing through said chambers must deviate Ifrom a straight path to pass through said orifice to assure uniform combustion of the gases.

8. In an apparatus for forming fine glass bers in which glass rods are fed across the outlet end of an exhaust orice to melt and attenuate the rods by the heat and force of a blast of intensely hot gases emitted from said oiice, a burner having a plurality of combustion chambers therein, said chambers provided at one end with inlet ports through which combustible gaseous fuel is fed into the chambers and an exhaust oriiice common to and communicating with the other ends of said chambers from which orice the stream of hot products flows, at least one of said chambers being offset laterally Ifrom said common oriice so that gases passing through said chamber must deviate from a Straight path to pass through said orifice so that any straight-line ilow ci' the gases from the chambers and through the orifice is disturbed and uniform combustion of the gases is assured.

9. In the process of forming iine glass bers in which an elongated body of glass is introduced endwise into an intensely hot blast of the `prod- .ucts of combustion of a gaseous fuel adjacent the point of discharge of the blast into the atmosphere to soften and attenuate the body to iine bers, the steps which consist in passing a gaseous fuel mixture through a highly heated zone in which it is burned, directing the products of combustion into `a second zone laterally offset from said first zone, thereby creating a high turbulence in the products of combustion in the second zone, discharging said highly turbulent products of combustion into the atmosphere to dorm a blast of high velocity and intense heat, by which the body of glass is softened and attenuated.

10. In the process of forming ne glass fibers in which a small rod of glass is introduced endwise into ian intensely hot blast of the products off combustion of a gaseous fuel adjacent the point of blast discharge to substantially simultaneously lsoften and attenuate the rod to ne fibers, the steps Iwhich consist in :passing a gaseous [fuel mixture through separate highly heated zones in which it is burned, directing the products [of combustion into a common region laterally cifset lfrom said zones, thereby creating a high turbulence in said region, discharging said highly turbulent products of combustion into the atmosphere in the form of a single blast of high velocity by lwhich the rod of glass is softened and attenuated.

11. In an apparatus for forming ne glass ibers in which glass is fed into the path of a stream of high tem-perature products of combustion flowing at suiicient velocity to attenuate the glass to ne bers, a burner having a chamber `within which a combustible mixture of gases is burned, said chamber having an inlet port through which the combustible mixture of gases is introduced into the chamber and also having a discharge orifice through which the products of combustion are discharged in the form of a high temperature blast, the Walls of the chamber at opposite sides of the discharge orifice converging toward the discharge orice, a wall extending from a .point adjacent the inlet port toward but short of the discharge orice and from side to side of the chamber to partition the chamber into 10 two compartments, the end of said Wall `adjacent the discharge orifice being s0 related with respect to the opposite converging lWalls of the chamber as to `form restricted outlets Ifrom the two compartments so that the turbulence of the ,products of combustion from the two compartments is increased prior to passage of the products of combustion through said discharge -orice, and a passage through said wall `adjacent the inlet port establishing communication between the two compartments.

CHARLES J. STALEGO.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

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